The Treaty of the Treaty of Point Elliott Assembly Lesson Plan
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The Treaty of Point Elliott Assembly Lesson By: Lena Jones, HCC Curator Tulalip News, syǝcǝb Patkanim Governor Stevens Bonaparte (Sna-talc) Student’s Section: diƚǝxᵂ ƚushuylǝp (This is what you folks will do.): 1) Song (Optional) In Coast Salish teachings, all good work begins with a song or prayer. The class can sing a song before the lesson begins. • A song is considered a gift. It can be any song the students, or some of the students, or even one of the students is willing to share. Sing or listen to the song. 2) Assembly Read the following four accounts of the Treaty of Point Elliott assembly and treaty signing in 1855. Complete the questions in the chart noting the different perspectives. POINT ELLIOTT TREATY Clinton Snowden, "The Point Elliott Treaty," History of Washington. The Rise and Progress of an American State. New York: Century History Company, 1909. Volume III p. 276-77. (After the completion of the work of the Medicine Creek Treaty governor Isaac I. Stevens dispatched Simmons, Shaw, Cushman, Cock and Ford to assemble the remaining tribes of the Nisqually Nation at Point Elliott for a second council.). This was assembled on January 12th and continued until the 21st. No special difficulty was encountered in the negotiations, but nearly 2,300 Indians were present, and many speeches were made. The governor first explained the purpose of the council as before, and was followed by Colonel Simmons, who spoke the Chinook Jargon, a language which they nearly all understood, and by Secretary Mason. The Indians then sang a mass, after the Catholic form, and recited a prayer, after which the treaty was read and interpreted sentence by sentence by Colonel Shaw. When the reading was concluded the chiefs were invited to express their opinions, and to suggest any modifications they might wish to have made. Seattle, chief of the Duwamish tribes, Patkanim, the chief of the Snoqualmies, who had been present at, and is supposed to have planned the attack on Fort Nisqually in which Wallace was killed a few years earlier, Chow-it-hoot, Goliah and others expressed themselves, generally approving what was proposed, and when all had finished the treaty was signed, first by Governor Stevens, and then by the chiefs, headmen and witnesses as before. This treaty provided for the payment of $150,000 in annuities and $15,000 for improving the reservations and removing the Indians to them, and for two reservations of two sections each, one near Port Madison, and one on the east side of Fidalgo Island; also for one comprising the peninsula at the southeastern end of Perry Island, and another occupying the delta formed by the Lummi, or Nooksack River. A special reservation of a whole township, of thirty-six sections, was also made on the north side of the Snohomish River at its mouth, "for the purpose of establishing thereon an agricultural and industrial school, and with the view of ultimately drawing thereto, and settling thereon, all the Indians living west of the Cascade Mountains in said territory. POINT ELLIOTT COUNCIL Kent D. Richards, "The Point Elliott Council," Isaac I. Stevens, young man in a hurry. Provo: Brigham Young University, 1979. p. 202-204. In mid-January many of the Indians began to gather at Point Elliott. The Snohomish and Snoqualmie Indians welcomed newcomers with impressive ceremony as they lined up on the beach in single file and greeted each man with the sign of the cross. After dark there was continuous singing and preaching, and George Gibbs commented, "They did very well as regards tune and in the open air their hymns or rather canticles have quite a good effect.” "The Indians are all at present in an exceedingly pious frame of mind and are evidently brushing up their religion for a grand display on the Governor's arrival." On January 17 the Duwamish Indians made their appearance, and four days later Stevens arrived. Gibbs drew up a draft incorporating the same general provisions as the Medicine Creek treaty with the reservations based on investigations Gibbs had made the previous week. Of 3,000 Indians covered by this treaty about 2,300 were on the treaty grounds; those missing were mainly children and old people-and the Nooksack Indians, who were not contacted because of cold weather and frozen rivers. On January 22 the council began with the four chiefs whom the whites considered most important seated in the front rank: Seattle (Duwamish League), Patkanim (Snoqualmie), Goliah (Skagit), and Chow-its-hoot (Lummi). The subchiefs were seated next and the rest were grouped behind without specific order. Stevens, as usual, opened the council with an address. He began, "My Children! You are not my children because you are the fruit of my loins, but because you are children for whom I have the same feeling as if you were the fruit of my loins. You are my children for whom I will strenuously labor all the days of my life until I shall be taken hence." The father-child analogy became a favorite with Stevens, and he stressed it in subsequent councils on the Sound. Whatever reactions the Indians may have had, it is the key to understanding Stevens' view of the Indians. He believed that they, like children, had not yet reached the status of adulthood with its rights and responsibilities, and that they needed care and guidance until they achieved full growth and maturity. He did not assume that they were inherently inferior, but that they had not yet reached the full potential of human development. Also, like children, they should obey their father which meant that good behavior should be rewarded and bad conduct punished. As at Medicine Creek, Stevens carefully explained the desires of the "Great Father," the provisions of the treaty, and the necessity to send the treaty to the nation's capital for final approval before it could take effect. After the governor finished, each of the four chiefs spoke, and all indicated their approbation. The commissioners went through the treaty item by item, and before evening the document had been signed. The next morning the governor's men distributed presents while Chief Seattle in return presented a white flag to Stevens and declared, "Now by this we make friends and put away all bad feelings if we ever had any. We are the friends of the Americans. All the Indians are of the same mind. They look upon you as our father. We will never change our minds." POINT ELLIOTT TREATY, ANCESTRAL COMMITMENT, A Longhouse Perspective In Coast Salish societies, it was appropriate to welcome visitors to your land or your place. Our ancestors had well developed diplomatic and political traditions for all matters. They recognized one another as distinct nations and honored one another by respecting one another and one another’s beliefs. The treaty signing event was held in January, a holy time for our people, when we share words of encouragement, sing our beautiful spirit songs, and offer prayers for our communities. In Coast Salish culture, our elders tell us all good things begin with a song or prayer. When done so, the Spirit is with us. To our ancestors, when the treaty signing was opened with a prayer and song, it symbolized the sacredness of the process. In this manner, with the presence of the Sacred as a witness, it reflected a serious matter; and our teaching is that all must put aside their differences and work toward good. While many understood the Chinook Jargon language, it was a trade language and had a limited vocabulary. The treaty was translated from English to Chinook Jargon, then from Chinook Jargon to the languages of the people. Ancestral languages of the people who attended included Northern Lushootseed, Southern Lushootseed, Twana, Halkomelem, Northern Straits Salish, with various dialects among the language groups. Our stories tell us when the Creator was spreading languages, he liked this area so much, he tossed the remaining languages he had here and stayed. When Governor Stevens asked the leaders to speak, in the eyes of our ancestors, it was affirming the process and the assurance of the agreements made. In Coast Salish cultures, when people are asked to speak, it is bearing witness to the event, symbolizing the significance and allowing them to be the eyes and ears of the land. It is their job to carry the message back to their communities and later to recall what they’ve seen and heard in the event. When gifts were given, it was finalizing the event and avowing the good will and good faith of the agreement in the eyes of our ancestors. Done and witnessed in this manner, our ancestors felt the promises were meant to be kept for all time. It became a sacred commitment according to our culture, more akin to a covenant. Lena Jones, MaOM, HCC Education Curator We didn’t have laws. We had teachings. Eugene Harry, Malahat Elder, HCC Lecture Series, 2016 Anybody. All people. All cultures. We have such diverse peoples living in this country, in our communities. How do we best learn to live together? Well, you keep your promises first. From there, you learn to live together. Darrell Hillaire, Lummi Elder, HCC Film Series, 2015 All are related. Our elders tell us the Europeans are our brother – basically our younger brother, and we have to help him understand how to take care of the earth and understand that, in this universe, all things are connected and everything is spiritual. Spencer Martin, Methow Elder, HCC Lecture Series, 2012 POINT ELLIOTT TREATY’S 150TH BIRTHDAY: A CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION By Sherry Guydelkon, Tulalip See-Yaht-Sub, January 19, 2005 According to the historical record, 4,992 native people took part in the negotiation of the Point Elliott Treaty in 1855.